1. Field of the invention
The present invention is related to a line concentrator with a storage function, and especially to a line concentrator able to be used to expand a connecting port, and used to store data, it can save the cost of purchasing another personal storage device and another line concentrator, and can largely reduce the space occupied by a personal storage device in favor of expanding for other peripheral implements of a computer mainframe.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Generally, a personal computer mainframe is provided, in addition to the basic operational construction, with various connecting ports; so that a user can be expanded for the peripheral implements. And by virtue of nonstop advancing of the technique of transmission, peripheral implements using various transmitting interfaces have been developed; thereby, the problem derived from different types of connecting ports or the limitation of expanding of functions of a computer mainframe derived from insufficient amount of connecting ports exists. Therefore, there have been universal serial line-connecting distributors used to extend the line of a single connecting port to a line concentrator with multiple lines of connecting ports to expand the amount and type of the connecting port, the thereby to increase the functional expanding of a computer mainframe.
And more, by the fact that desktop computers or notebooks mostly are developed toward the designing aim of light weight and small volume, the connecting ports of them are arranged in a crowded mode, thereby, the spaces of the connecting ports can only afford connecting of a normal plug (connector); in this mode, when a line concentrator is inserted in such a connecting port on a computer mainframe, the volume of the line concentrator obscures a neighboring connecting port to make the latter lose its function. Moreover, some exteriorly connected auxiliary peripheral implements such as a personal storage device mostly also have their related circuits directly connected by means of plugs for the sake of convenience of carrying, the appearances of the plugs are larger than normal plugs to thereby hinder them from being arranged side by side with other connectors to be inserted into some mutually neighboring connecting ports. This makes a limitation against use of other peripheral implements.
In view of the above statement, the primary object of the present invention is to provide a line concentrator with a storage function, whereof, an insertion end to be connected to a connecting port and a housing provided with a plurality of connecting ports compose its main body. The housing has therein a serially connected line concentrating circuit and a flash memory storage circuit being integrated therein. A line concentrating and distributing control loop in the serially connected line concentrating circuit is connected with a serial connecting-line interface in the flash memory storage circuit to form integration of the serially connected line concentrating circuit with the flash memory storage circuit. So that the entire line concentrator can afford expanding and connecting of other peripheral implements by taking advantage of the provision of the connecting ports, and can form a personal disk for storing data by taking advantage of the memories in the flash memory storage circuit.